A pioneering Reform synagogue makes way for a booming Iranian Jewish community I came home to Great Neck, N.Y., to get to know Temple Beth-El’s shrinking Ashkenazi congregation

At a time when Great Neck was still mostly Christian, Temple Beth-El “was an essential sign that Jews could live in Great Neck and that there were enough of them... to make it safe and desirable for others to try it out,” wrote historian Judith Goldstein. @forward.com forward.com/news/818938/...

The Guilty Pleasure of the Anti-Memoir - The Provincetown Independent I remember vividly the day I read my sister’s diary. I don’t remember what she wrote, but I remember the anxious urgency with which I turned each page, determined to […]

"I remember vividly the day I read my sister’s diary. I don’t remember what she wrote, but I remember the anxious urgency with which I turned each page, determined to cram as much reading in as possible before someone discovered my crime..."
provincetownindependent.org/local-journa...

Could dementia be the key to saving endangered Jewish languages? Sometimes when people's short-term memories begin to falter, they recall the first languages that they learned.

"One day, when Sabrina Hakim was out for a walk with her father, he started speaking a language she could not understand. Sabrina figured he must be speaking Judeo-Kashi, a variety of Judeo-Iranian. Her father spoke this language as a child in the Iranian city of Kashan before he moved to Tehran."

This is wild: "Since dementia affects shorter-term memory more than longer-term memory, it’s not unusual for multilingual people with dementia to begin speaking the language they learned first."

Via @forward.com and @laurenhakimi.bsky.social.

Could dementia be the key to saving endangered Jewish languages? Sometimes when people's short-term memories begin to falter, they recall the first languages that they learned.

I wrote about how dementia is helping some people preserve rare Judeo-Iranian languages. It's a story of intergenerational partnerships and how family bonds can get stronger even in the face of an awful disease. Check it out! @forward.com @jewishlanguageproj.bsky.social forward.com/culture/7739...

Do you go to a Halachic Egal or Trad Egal minyan? I'd love to hear from you for a story I'm working on. Chat me here or email: keene at forward dot com
-Louis

Why a little-known Jewish writer from Belgium went viral — and why you should read her too Harpman, a Belgian-Jewish writer who survived the Holocaust, wrote the novel 'I Who Have Never Known Men,' which has become a TikTok sensation

For @forward.com, I wrote about my newest favorite book, brought to me by the highbrow literary icons of.... you guessed it... TikTok

forward.com/culture/book...

Glad to hear!! I hope you like it!

On the border between hipster and Hasidic, a Brooklyn barbershop specializes in Orthodox haircuts For the Bukharian Jewish barbers at Kent Avenue Barbershop in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, payot are no problem.

For @forward.com, I wrote about a bougie Williamsburg barber shop where Bukharian barbers cut hipster and Hasidic hair alike. Check it out!!

forward.com/culture/7551...

New film captures history of New York’s ‘Latino Borscht Belt’ “Villa Encanto” — financed by Lin-Manuel Miranda — tells the story of Ulster County’s Las Villas on the big screen.

Huge earrings, a vintage beehive coiffure, men in matching sparkly gold blazers. A new film full of bright colors and authentic throwback looks captures the rich history of Las Villas, the "Latino Borscht Belt." I wrote about "Villa Encanto" for @timesunion.com

www.timesunion.com/hudsonvalley...

19 Naomis, 0 nametags: What happened when a group of Naomis met in Prospect Park - Jewish Telegraphic Agency A mysterious flyer brings a group of Naomis to Brooklyn to discuss Naomi Klein's "Doppelganger."

Have you seen the Naomi flyers floating around Brooklyn? Though not a Naomi myself, I made it my business to infiltrate their flock and report back to the non-Naomi community for @jta.org New York Jewish Week. Check it out: www.jta.org/2025/06/05/n...

Thank you!!

Barzakh's owner, El Atigh Abba, was born in Mauritania, where a local imam issued a fatwa against him because of his activism in the Arab Spring. This was probably one of the most mind-blowing sets of interviews I've ever done!

At this pro-Palestinian cafe, you can practice your Hebrew and imagine you're in Mauritania El Atigh Abba's Brooklyn cafe is an in-between place influenced by its owner's favorite cafe in his native Mauritania.

My newest for @forward.com: On its busy calendar of speed dating events, belly dancing performances and fundraisers for Palestinians, Brooklyn’s Barzakh Café has also hosted Jewish events, including interfaith Shabbat dinners and Mimouna celebrations

forward.com/culture/7207...

New Yorkers can bid on Ottessa Moshfegh’s toothbrush, Eddie Huang's boxers The live auction is April Fools’ day, but it’s no joke.

Ottessa Moshfegh's toothbrush, a signed box of laxatives, a fake Birkin bag, and more literary treasures will be up for auction on Tuesday in Manhattan. My story for @gothamist.com

gothamist.com/arts-enterta...

State Department plan to deport ‘pro-Hamas’ students relies on a 1952 law that targeted Jews Jewish Holocaust survivors suspected of being Soviet sympathizers were subject to the 1952 McCarran-Walter Act.

I wrote about how Trump is using a 1950s antisemitic law to target pro-Palestine student activists. For @forward.bsky.social

forward.com/news/702427/...

At a 'Sinners' Shabbat' in Brooklyn, the faithful gather for fire massages and human sushi platters When I arrived at the Brooklyn nightclub, a greeter checked my outfit. “Those jeans are black, not blue, right?” she asked. “Right,” I promised. For tonight’s “Sinners’ Shabbat” event, we were instruc...

"We were instructed to dress in 'fetishwear,' but I’m a fuddy-duddy Long Island girl whose only fetish is being attracted to men. Thankfully, the greeter didn’t seem to mind, or notice, my decidedly un-kinky Kate Spade loafers."

My latest for @forward.bsky.social

forward.com/culture/7004...

A new Hasidic community grows in Brownsville, Brooklyn - Jewish Telegraphic Agency Fleeing high housing prices in Crown Heights, some adherents of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement are moving further east to the formerly Jewish, now predominantly African-American neighborhood.

A new Hasidic community grows in Brownsville:

Fleeing high housing costs in Crown Heights, some Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidim are moving east to the formerly Jewish, now predominantly African American neighborhood.

My latest for the New York Jewish Week

www.jta.org/2025/03/06/n...

thank you for including me!!!

This is a great read about one of the many delightful things people invent to celebrate our city and its quirks.

Mr. Marathon Is a 26-Mile Tribute to Cheap Produce Mr. Marathon involves visiting all 13 stores in the Mr. Fruit chain, and buying (and consuming) a thematically appropriate product at each one.

Mr. Marathon Is a 26-Mile Tribute to Cheap Produce

Mr. Marathon Is a 26-Mile Tribute to Cheap Produce Mr. Marathon involves visiting all 13 stores in the Mr. Fruit chain, and buying (and consuming) a thematically appropriate product at each one.

For @hellgatenyc.com, I wrote about Mr. Marathon: a 26-mile run in honor of Mr. Fruit, a grocery store chain known for its cheap produce. "I will literally leave the USA if Mr. Kale closes," said one organizer as we trotted through Bed-Stuy at an 11-minute mile pace

hellgatenyc.com/mr-marathon-...

New Exhibit Explores NYCHA’s Open Spaces, Which Once Made Neighbors Jealous When first created in the 1930s, NYCHA devoted more attention to open spaces than other American housing authorities.

A new exhibition heaps praise on oft-criticized NYCHA, calling upon the authority’s proud origins to express a vision for what public housing might still be, despite challenges posed by climate change and chronic underfunding. @citylimitsnews.bsky.social

citylimits.org/2025/01/16/n...